Gov. Pat Quinn says a lawsuit over his decision to suspend lawmaker pay for failing to act on the state pension crisis will be a "landmark" case.
Quinn attended a court hearing Tuesday involving a lawsuit filed by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton to force Quinn and Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka to issue paychecks.
A Cook County Circuit Court judge set oral arguments for Sept. 18.
Last month, Quinn cut $13.8 million for legislators' pay from the state budget after threatening consequences if they didn't act on pensions.
The lawsuit asks the court to decide if Quinn's line-item veto fully eliminated lawmakers' salaries. If the court upholds Quinn's amendatory veto, plaintiffs want the court to declare Quinn's action unconstitutional.
Quinn says his move is constitutional.
